Collapsible clothes hanger



1952 P. c. KEUTZER COLLAPSIBLE cwmss HANGER Filed May 5, 1951 Patented Nov. 18, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE COLLAPSIBLE CLOTHES HANGER Palma C. Keutzer, Chicago, Ill.

Application May 5, 1951, Serial No. 224,715

Claims. 1 My invention relates to an improved collapsible clothes hanger capable of carrying clothes from 'a door, wall socket, orthe like, and characterized by simple and inexpensive construction and ability to carry a large quantity of clothes.

Apartment dwellers and travelers frequently desire to hang clothes for drying purposes, especially in a bathroom. Because of the space requirements of conventional clothes hangers, these are unsuitable for this purpose and accordingly have not been used. Such persons have accordingly been forced to give up efforts to dry clothes in such places or to drape them over the bathroom in unsightly fashion that is also ineffective for drying.

In accordance with the present invention a clothes hanger is provided which is particularly suitable for use by travelers and apartment dwellers. The hanger in the collapsed condition occupies very little space and may be conveniently suspended in the folded condition from a conventional closet hook for storage without reducing the capacity of the closet significantly. When it is desired to use the hanger, it is merely removed from the closet, inverted to cause the hanger spokes to expand and extend out horizontally, anchor the handle in the operative position, and then to'place the handle onthe door or wall socket to which it is anchored. The hanger then forms clothes-carrying spokes that are spaced from each other and from the wall and form convenient and highly effective supports for clothes to be dried.

The hanger of the present invention, despite its ability to collapse and to mount on a door or a wall bracket, is inherently simple in construction and amenable to inexpensive mass production to meet the large demand for an appliance of this type.

It is therefore a general object of the present invention to provide an improved collapsible clothes hanger.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved clothes hanger especially suitable for use by apartment dwellers and travellers.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved clothes hanger that is simple and inexpensive in construction and suitable for mass production.

The novel features which I believe to be charaoteristic of my invention are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. My invention itself, however, both as to its organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, will best be understood by the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a view in perspective of the apparatus of the present invention in the expanded condition;

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the apparatus of Figure l mounted on a door;

Figure 3 is a side elevational view of the apparatus of Figure 1 in the partially folded or collapsed condition;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view through axis 44, Figure 2; and

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary view in perspective of the apparatus of Figure I mounted on a wall socket.

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown at I0 a head post of generally circular crosssection. The head post has a neck portion ma at one end about which is wrapped a cord or'wire 12 to suspend the hanger. The head also defines a rounded annular groove lob which carries the pivotally mounted hanger spokes as described in detail hereafter. Beyond the groove 10b, the head has a, generally cylindrical portion lllc which flattens out to a handle-receiving flat portion Hid as shown.

The flat portion Hid of the head 10 pivotally receives the handle H. The pivotal connection is defined by the rivet IG- which extends through holes in both head and handle and is headed at both ends to form a firm anchor.

The handle may be anchored either inthe aligned position in relation to the head (Figure 3) or in the transverse, hanging position (Figure 1). This is accomplished by the removable anchor pin l8 which fits in the opening file of the head and extends into either hole I l-a. of the head to anchor the handle parallel to or transverse to the head as desired.

As shown, the handle is a metal strip having. a degree twist Mb near its outboard end. The outboard end. of the handle is cut out and bent over to form the two fork arms Me. The cut-out portion of the handle extends backwardly beyond the bend at the fork arms and is bent over to form an inboard central fork arm Md which is parallel to the arms Mo and in spaced relation therewith to form a U-shaped anchor. The end portion Me of the arm Md is bent in the inboard direction to abut the face of the handle as shown.

The U-shaped anchor defined by the spaced handle arms Me and [4d snugly receives the top edge of a door as shown in Figure 2. This is a particularly convenient method of supporting the hesive, or other means.

hanger because it does not require any alteration of the door or attachment of any mounting brackets. Preferably, a felt cushion 20, Figure 2, is provided on the portion of the handle straddling the door to avoid scratching the door.

The clothes-carrying members are defined by the spokes 22 which are pivotally anchored to the head at groove l 13?). Each of these spokes has a flattened portion 220 adjacent its inboard end, which portion has a hole to receive a suitable anchoring wire 24. A series of balls or beads 26, each having a hole 26a to receive wire 24, are interposed between adjacent spokes and, as shown in Figure 4, are mounted in the groove lflb.

The wire 24 is drawn snug so that the beads 25 bear rather tightly against the groove lflb. This anchors the spokes against sliding motion in relation to the groove lab inasmuch as the beads are so held. The beads also hold the wire 24 in spaced relation to the head ii so that there is ample clearance for rotation of the spokes without interference.

Each spoke has a bead 22a on its outboard end to prevent snagging the clothes.

The spokes are held against dropping, and simultaneously closed when desired, by the float 28. This float has a central opening 28a, Figure .2, which fits loosely about the handle I4 and slides easily thereover. It also has a series of elongated radial slots 2%, one for each spoke, which receive the spokes to guide and anchor the same. The float is of saucer shape with a skirt portion 280 extending toward the head 40. The slots 28b in the float 28 extend into the skirt portion as shown so that when the float is in its lowermost position (resting on the beads 26), the spokes are held in horizontal position as they rest against the outer ends of the slots. Each slot extends inwardly 0f the float by a distance sufficient, when the float is in the outboard position, to permit the spokes to rest snugly against the handle. If desired, a rubber band 01' strap may be secured about the ends of the spokes to hold them in the collapsed position. Alternatively, an elongated bag may be provided for the hanger.

The spokes 2212 are shortened as shown in Figures 1 and 2 to clear the door or wall from which the hanger is supported. The spokes, however,

are substantially the length of the handle to utilize fully the available space.

,If it is desired to mount the hanger on a wall, a suitable socket bracket such as 39, Figure 5, is secured to the wall, either by suitable screws, ad-

The outboard fork arms I40 may be inserted in the socket so defined to anchor the hanger in position.

From the above description it will be evident that I have provided an improved clothes hanger that collapses to a small fraction of its usable size and can be easily mounted on a door, Wall, or other suitable place. The hanger is simple in construction and particularly suitable for inexpensive mass production, since the parts are all simple stampings or other readily manufactured shapes.

While I have shown a specific embodiment of my invention, it will of course be understood that many variations and alternative constructions may be made without departing from the true spirit and scope thereof. I therefore intend by the appended claims to cover all such modifications and alternative constructions as wall Within the true spirit and scope of the claims.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A collapsible clothes hanger suitable for mounting on a wall, door, or the like comprising, a head having a circumferential groove, a plurality of beads disposed in the groove and extending beyond the confines thereof, a plurality of spokes having their inboard ends sandwiched between the beads, the beads and spokes having aligned holes defining a circle, anchoring means extending through the holes in the beads and spokes to anchor the spokes pivotally in relation to the head, a handle pivotally secured to the head, anchoring means operable to lock the handle selectively in aligned or transverse relation to the head, a float having an opening loosely received on the handle and head for sliding movements thereover, the float bottoming against the beads at one limit of its motion, the float having a series of radial slots each receiving one of said spokes and of length to support the spokes at substantially transverse orientation in relation to the head when the float is at said limit of its motion, the spokes being substantially the length of the handle, and mounting means on the handle to secure the same to a door, wall or the like.

2. A collapsible clothes hanger suitable for mounting on a wall, door, or the like comprising, a head carrying a substantially symmetrical array of pivotally attached clothes supporting arms, means attaching the arms to the head in an annular groove, a handle pivotally attached to the head and within the confines of the arms when collapsed, anchoring means adapted to lock the handle selectively in aligned or transverse relation to the head, a float having an opening loosely received on the handle and head for sliding movements thereover, means to arrest movement of the float near said groove, the float having a series of radial slots, each receiving one of said arms and operable to support the same at substantially transverse orientation in relation to the head when the float engages said means, the arms being substantially the length of the handle, and mounting means on the free end of the handle to secure the same to a door, wall or the like.

3. A collapsible clothes hanger suitable for mounting on a wall, door, or the like comprising, a head carrying a substantially symmetrical array of pivotally attached clothes supporting arms, means attaching the arms to the head in an annular groove, a handle pivotally attached to the head and within the confines of the arms when collapsed, anchoring means adapted to lock the handle selectively in aligned or transverse relation to the head, a float having an opening loosely received on the handle and head for sliding movements thereover, means to arrest movement of the float near said groove, the float having a series of radial slots, each receiving one of said arms and of size to support the arm at substantially transverse orientation in relation to the head when the float engages said means, the arms being substantially the length of the handle, the end of the handle being of U-shaped configuration adapted to fit on the top of a door or the like to sustain the handle in horizontal orientation.

4. A collapsible clothes hanger for mounting on a wall, door, or the like, comprising, a head carrying a substantially symmetrical array of pivotally attached clothes supporting arms, means attaching the arms to the head in an annular groove, a handle pivotally attached to the head and within the confines of the arms when collapsed, anchoring means adapted to lock the handle selectively in aligned or transverse relation to the head, a saucer-shaped float having an opening loosely received on the handle and head for sliding movements thereover, means to arrest movement of the float near said groove, the skirt of the float extending towards the head, the float having a series of radial slots each receiving one of said arms and of size to support the arm at substantially transverse orientation in relation to the head when the float engages said means, the arms being substantially the length of the handle, the handle terminating at its free end in a flat bar portion with transverse end forks and a spaced parallel prong defining a U- shaped configuration adapted to flt on the top of a door or the like to sustain the handlle in horizontal orientation.

5. A collapsible clothes hanger for mounting on a wall, door, or the like, comprising, a head carrying a substantially symmetrical array of pivotally attached clothes supporting arms, means attaching the arms to the head in an annular groove, a handle pivotally attached to the head and within the confines of the arms when collapsed, anchoring means adapted to lock the handle selectively in aligned or transverse relation to the head, a saucer-shaped float having an opening loosely received on the handle and head for sliding movements thereover, means to arrest movement of the float near said groove, the skirt of the float extending towards the head, the float having a series of radial slots each receiving one of said arms and of size to support the arm at substantially transverse orientation in relation to the head when the float engages said means, the arms being substantially the length of the handle, the handle terminating at its free end and in a flat bar portion with transverse end forks, and a spaced parallel prong defining a U-shaped configuration adapted to fit on the top of a door or the like to sustain the handle in horizontal orientation, the prong being bent over in the inboard direction to engage and be supported by the handle.

PALMA C. KEUTZER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 353,332 Premble Nov. 30, 1886 507,740 Lindner Oct. 31, 1893 542,245 Everett July 9, 1895 1,245,425 Becker Nov. 6, 1917 1,951,979 Hoffmire Mar. 20, 1934 2,262,114 Ottow Nov. 11, 1941 2,384,878 Berman Sept. 18, 1945 2,447,128 Logan Aug. 17, 1948 

